Islamabad High Court grants pre-arrest bail to Imran Khan in anti-terror case

Islamabad: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has granted pre-arrest bail to Pakistan former Prime Minister Imran Khan till August 25 after he was booked under the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) for threatening an additional sessions judge and senior police officers of the Islamabad Police at a rally in the federal capital's F-9 Park.

During the hearing, the Islamabad High Court ordered Imran Khan to appear before the concerned anti-terrorism court on August 25. Until then, the court said, police must not arrest him. This comes as Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) legal team on Monday filed a pre-arrest bail plea for Imran Khan after a first information report (FIR) was registered against him in Islamabad High Court.

According to the details provided by Pakistan's local media outlet ARY News, Taking up the petition, Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani asked what objections were raised on it. Replying to the judge, Imran Khan's lawyer Babar Awan claimed that "Imran's residence has been surrounded and he cannot even approach the relevant court".

Imran's lawyers, Babar Awan and Faisal Chaudhry, filed a petition seeking pre-arrest bail on his behalf in a terrorism case registered for 'threatening' a female judge and senior police officers in a public rally.
As per the petition, Imran Khan was being targeted by the ruling Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) for being blunt against corruption and corrupt politicians. The plea alleged that the government had decided to "cross all limits" to arrest Imran "under false accusations" and was "hell-bent to sort out the petitioner and his party at all costs," as per the media portal.

The petition also added that the most recent FIR against the PTI chairman was "politically motivated" and it added that Imran had been "falsely" involved with "mala fide intention and ulterior motives to humiliate" him.
The pre-arrest bail plea contended the case was based on "surmises and conjectures" and that no evidence was available on record against Imran in connection with the case. It also contended that there was no "direct or indirect" evidence available on record against Imran in the case.

Another point that was highlighted in the plea was the assurance that if granted protective bail there will be "no likelihood" of Imran absconding or tampering with prosecution evidence.
It should be noted that a terrorism case was registered against Imran Khan for using derogatory language and threatening Additional Session Judge Zeba Chaudhry in his speech in Islamabad on August 20. Sources say that the text of the PTI Chief's August 20 speech has also been included in the FIR.

Imran Khan, addressing a PTI rally in Islamabad, had said that they would file cases against Inspector General Islamabad Police, Deputy IG Islamabad Police and magistrate Zeba Chaudhry for the torture of PTI leader Shahbaz Gill.
Meanwhile, Pakistan Peoples Party leader and former president Asif Ali Zardari have opposed the arrest of Imran Khan. He believes that the arrest will cause political damage to the ruling alliance. (ANI)